Ski with cut-resistant surface covering

ABSTRACT

Skis and similar structures are provided with a cut-resistant decorative surface layer of urethane resin on a fibrous support. The protective surface layer may be removed and replaced as needed. The ski is protected against marring and scratching and is stabilized against chatter.

United States Patent Downs Nov. 28, 1972 SKI WITH CUT-RESISTANT SURFACE2,537,982 1/ 1951 Finn ..260/32.2 COVERING 2,918,442 12/1959 Gerrard etal. ..260/29.3 3 070 476 12/1962 Miller ..161/190 UX 2 I t Minn. [7 1Dan Dwms St Paul 3,567,237 3/1971 Miller ..280/1 1.13 T [73] Assignee:Minnesota Mining and Manuiacturing Company, St Paul, Minn FOREIGNPATENTS OR APPLICATIONS [22] Filed; O t, 2, 1970 1,173,199 12/1969 GreatBritain ..280/11.13 L

[211 App! 77649 Primary Examiner-Benjamin Hersh AssistantExaminer-Milton L. Smith [52] US. Cl. ..280/ 11.13 L, 156/334, 156/335,0m yKinn y, Alexander. Sell, Steldt & Delahum 161/156, 161/190 [51] Int.Cl ..A63c 5/12 [57] ABSTRACT [58] meld of Search 1'13; ie 4 Skis andsimilar structures are provided with a cut-resistant decorative surfacelayer of urethane resin on a fibrous support. The protective surfacelayer may be [56] References Clted removed and replaced as needed. Theski is protected UNITED STATES PATEN'IS I against marring and scratchingand is stabilized against chatter. 3,272,522 9/1966 Kennedy ..280/ll.13L r 3,336,183 8/1967 Larner, Jr. et al. ..161/156 6Clailm,lDl'awingFigul'e SKI WITH CUT-RESISTANT SURFACE COVERING This inventionrelates primarily to an improvement in skis and similar sportsequipment, although in a broader aspect it relates generally to a widevariety of substrates, e.g., of metal, wood or other material, providedwith a protective decorative surfacing.

Skis used by novices are subject to considerable abrasion and marringwhich soon impairs the appearance of the ski. More experienced skiers,with better control of the skis, may be able to reduce the extent ofsuch damage but frequently are bothered by chattering or excessivevibration of the skis during use. Attempts have been made to solve theseproblems, for example by use of high quality protective surfacefinishes, laminated structures, and perhaps in other ways. However, noone prior to the present invention, so far as is known to me, hasprovided a structure with the advantageous combination of propertieshere supplied.

In my novel structure the exposed decorative and marresistant surfacecovering is a relatively thick, e.g., about -35 mil, smooth-surfacedlayer of pigmented urethane resin. Pigments of any desired color orcombination of colors may be used. A particularly pleasing effect isobtained by combining small quantities of shiny metallic flecks withdark colored pigments to provide a sparkly appearance. In another formthe coating is applied in two layers, the outer one of which containsdispersed pigmented elastomeric particles and has an attractivesuede-like essentially glare-free appearance. The urethane resin issufficiently hard and tough to resist gouging or tearing yet is alsoelastic and rubbery to an extent sufficient to withstand forces whichmight otherwise cause shattering, and the coating is found to contributegreatly to a vibration dampening effect. A typical pigmented resin mayhave a Shore A-2 hardness value within the range of 85 to 98 when testedin a thickness of at least about h inch.

The exposed surface covering is formed on a porous fibrous base whichcontributes dimensional stability and increased tensile strength. Thinopen woven fabrics are useful but tend to produce a roughened exposedsurface, and non-woven fibrous webs are therefore ordinarily preferred.An example is the spunbonded nonwoven polyester fabric available underthe trade name Reemay, a duPont product available in weight ranges ofabout 1.5 to about 2.5 oz./sq.yd. Spunbonded nylon fabrics are equallyuseful. The web is first coated and saturated with a polymeric adhesivecement composition which forms a firm bond with the urethane resin andalso subsequently with the surface of the ski or other substrate towhich the covering is applied.

Adhesive bonding between web and ski is sufficient to assure retentionof the covering under all normal use conditions. The presence of thefibrous web imparts EXAMPLE 1 A thin non-woven fibrous web ofpolyethylene terephthalate polyester fibers-having a nominal weight of 2oz./sq.yd. is supported on a silicone treated paper liner and saturatedwith a solution of a self-toughening adhesive as described in US. Pat.No. 2,537,982, ap-

Over the dried coated web is then applied'a thick coating of a'pigmentedselflcuring urethane resin mixture and the coating is permitted to cureat roomtemperature. The urethane coating has a thickness of 30 mils. Theurethane resin mixture is prepared from the following components, allproportions being in partsby weight:

Part A g I 100 parts polypropylene ether triol-(mw 440,eq.wt. 137) 220polypropylene ether triol (rnw 740,eq.wt 240) 180 calcium octoate 0.8phenyl mercuric acetate 1.2 pigment (optional) 5 Part B 100 pampolypropylene ether glycol (mw 2000) 712 I PbO paste PbO inpolypropylene ether glycol) 3 silica powder (Cab-O-Sil") 32 methylenebis o-chloroaniline 43.2 calcium octoate 2.4 phenyl mercuric acetate 4.8antioxidant (2,6-di-t-butyl-4-methylphenol) 3.2

Part C parts toluene diisocyanate 260 polypropylene ether triol (mw 740)140 Part D 30 parts toluene diisocyanate 60.7 polypropylene ether diol(rnw 400) 30.6 polypropylene ether triol (mw 440) 8.7

Parts A and B are mixed together, and parts C and D are separately mixedtogether. The two mixtures are combined and well mixed just prior tocoating'Curing is complete in about 24 hours at room temperature. Theundisturbed exposed surface is quite smooth, but increased smoothnessmay be obtained by inverting the freshly coated web onto a smoothsilicone-treated removable paper liner or other suitable smooth-surfacedremovable carrier for curing.

The clean upper surface of a metal ski is optionally first lightlycoated with a priming coat of the nitrile rubber phenolic resin adhesivecement composition which has been further diluted with the volatilesolvent 1 to a concentration of not more than about 10 percent.

sufficient tensile strength to permit removal of the bond is obtainedbetween the strip and the substrate. I

No edge lifting, blistering or removal of the strip is experiencedduring subsequent storage and use of the ski.

Equally firm bonds may be more rapidly obtained. by application of thesolvent-free strip under heat and pressure.

EXAMPLE 2 t The cement-coated fibrous web is coated with a first layerof a self-curing urethane resin composition, e.g., as used in Example 1,and is then further spray coated over said first layer with Nextel 3101suede coating composition, containing pigmented elastomeric urethaneresin particles in a self-curing urethane resin composition. The coatingis permitted to cure. The web is bonded to the upper surfaces of a pairof skis by the method described in Example ,1 to provide an attractiveappearing surface which is highly resistance to abrasion and marring,and which provides for reduced chatter of the skis during use.

in this example the fibrous web weighs 1.2 grams, the dry adhesivecement coating weighs 2.4 grams, and the two-layer urethane resincoating weighs 10.6 grams, per 24 sq.in. In a modification the fibrousweb weighs 0.6 gram, the adhesive cement weighs 2.7 grams, and theurethane coating weighs '1 3.5 grams, per 24 sq.in.

EXAMPLE 3 A self-curing pigmented urethane resin composition, e.g., asdescribed in Example .1 is coated on the smooth flat surface of atemporary carrier at a thickness of about 30 mils. While the compositionis still fluid it is covered witha nonwoven spunbonded web of tensilizednylon. The fluid wets and partially penetrates the fibrous web. A layerof neoprene-phenolic contact adhesive composition is spread uniformlyover the exposed surface of the web and is permitted to dry while theurethane composition is hardening. The upper surface of a metal ski iscovered with a thin coating of the same contact adhesive which isallowed to dry, and a strip of the adhesive-coated web is pressed ontothe coated surface promptly thereafter. Trimming of the edges andremoval of the temporary carrier completes the construction. There isprovided a tough and resilient, well bonded protective surfacing whichgives both an attractive appearance and improved performance to the ski.

The release surface may be a silicone-treated paper. Another suitablematerial is Warren Paper Co. Type T/K Patent AV ClS polymer-coated paperhaving a smooth glossy polymeric release surface. The nylon web consistsof spunbonded 1% inch staple fibers of 2.3 denier nylon 6 monofilamenthaving a weight of 8% lbs./ 320 sq.yds., pre-treated with 3% lbs/320sq.yds. of

8-45 acrylate latex. The neoprene-phenolic contact adhesive is a blendof essentially polychloroprene, phenolic resin, and magnesia in avolatile organic liquid solvent, e.g., as described in [1.8. Pat. No.2,9 l 8,442.

The appended drawing illustrates inperspective an article of manufacturein the form of a portion of a ski 10 having bonded to its upper surface11 a decorative protective covering 12 comprising a thin open fibrousbase 13, a tough resilient urethane resin outer layer 14, and apolymeric adhesive cement layer 15 at least partially impregnating thebase 13 and bonding the entire structure together. At least the outersurface layer of the urethane resin layer 14 is provided with decorativeinclusions l6. 1

What is claimed is as follows:

1. in a snow ski having .a smooth running surface adapted to travel oversnow and a smooth upper surface for supporting a skier, the improvementcomprising a reinforcing, protective, decorative layer substantiallycovering and adherently bonded to said smooth upper surface, said layerbeing comprised of:

a. an open fibrous base,

' b. polymeric adhesive cement impregnating said base and bonding thesame to said upper surface, and a tough resilient decorative urethanesurface layer coextensive with and adherently bonded to the adhesiveimpregnated layer, said urethane resin layer being about 20 to 40 milsin thickness and having a Shore A-2 hardness of from about to 98,whereby said ski is provided with a cut-resistant renewed decorativesurface and a lessened tendency to chatter or vibrate excessively inuse. 2. The manufacture of claim 1 wherein said fibrous base is anonwoven spunbonded web of polyester filaments.

3. The manufacture of claim 1 wherein said fibrous base is a nonwovenspunbonded web of nylon filaments.

4. The manufacture of claim 1 wherein said adhesive cement consistsessentially of butadiene-acrylonitrile rubbery polymer andphenol-aldehyde tackifier resin.

5. The manufacture of claim 1 wherein said adhesive cement consistsessentially of neoprene-phenolic contact adhesive.

6. The manufacture of claim 1 wherein said urethane resin layer containspigmented elastomeric particles.

2. The manufacture of claim 1 wherein said fibrous base is a nonwovenspunbonded weB of polyester filaments.
 3. The manufacture of claim 1wherein said fibrous base is a nonwoven spunbonded web of nylonfilaments.
 4. The manufacture of claim 1 wherein said adhesive cementconsists essentially of butadiene-acrylonitrile rubbery polymer andphenol-aldehyde tackifier resin.
 5. The manufacture of claim 1 whereinsaid adhesive cement consists essentially of neoprene-phenolic contactadhesive.
 6. The manufacture of claim 1 wherein said urethane resinlayer contains pigmented elastomeric particles.